SHOP THEIR STYLE
Colourful art, one-off finds and even more art give a relaxed vibe to a stately two-storey villa
Honesty box
Best thing about the house? As well as the layout being perfect for the way we live, this house is built to get lots of natural light, which makes it nice and warm for an old home. We’ve positioned the sofas so you can follow the sunny spots around the house.
What’s one thing you would change about your home if you could? Not much. It really is ideal for us. The only thing I’d do is make the driveway a bit wider, if I could. It’s so narrow, I wouldn’t like to back down it.
Most memorable experience you’ve had in your home? Some pretty cool sunsets from the second storey and some good fireworks displays from the Sky Tower.
Lisette’s style tips
+ Beauty of random My decorating style has changed over the years, depending on where we’re at with our life stage. Now that the boys are grown up, it’s much more about our space and less about accommodating their needs. I’ve never been keen on following trends, I prefer an eclectic look and tend to be drawn to things that have a story or a meaning behind them. I find if you gather a collection of things you love they will always look good together – don’t worry about what anyone else thinks. One store I find hard to go past is Charlotte Rust’s shop Babelogue in K’ Rd. I always come out with something. I’ve bought art from her and a ’70s-style cane chair.
+ Rest & relaxation We enjoy entertaining and this house is well set up for it. We’ve only been here for 18 months, so with Covid-19 and lockdowns, we really haven’t done a great deal. It’s always nice to start the evening with a glass of bubbles or a special cocktail. When we have people over, it’s always very casual. There’s a gathering space between the kitchen and the dining area that people are drawn to. And, when the weather’s warm, it flows easily to the outdoor seating area. I like to prep as much
of the food as possible, so by the time everyone arrives, I can relax and enjoy their company.
+ Work & play We both work from home. My work as a freelance make-up artist takes me all over the place but I do all my admin from my office at home. Gavin is a mortgage advisor and his clients come here for appointments, so we needed a space where we could work and play. What’s great about this place is that Gavin and I have an office upstairs and all the living is downstairs, so it’s easy to keep the two separate. We’ve got it set up so we each have our own work stations, with a good desk and chair. We were both working from home before Covid hit, so we were well aware of how to create a work space where you live. Now the rest of the world is catching on.
+ Love where you live We’ve been enjoying getting to know our neighbourhood. We moved to Grey Lynn a couple of months before Covid hit so we were just getting to know the local community. But after many hours of dog walking during lockdown levels 3 and 4, we’ve developed a good lie of the land and discovered parks and walkways we never knew existed. Over the last few months we have got to know the neighbours a little more, too, and they are all super friendly and welcoming. It’s quite a mixed bag, with people who are older than us, younger than us and from all walks of life, which adds real interest to the community. And we are doing our best to shop and eat out in the ’hood to support all our local businesses.